John Munson/The Star-LedgerAvery Johnson knew he would be in for a long season in his first year as coach of the Nets.

CHICAGO -- Avery Johnson woke up in a good mood this morning. And why shouldn't he? After tonight, the long, ugly 2010-11 season will be over for the Nets. Thankfully.

"I wouldn’t say it was any more difficult than what I thought,'' Johnson said at shootaround at United Center as the Nets prepared to face Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls. "I think it’s just been an adjustment in every area. So I was just expecting the unexpected and if something unexpected happened, you’ve just got to adjust, and change, and keep moving. I tried to just be real consistent with my approach with the guys, so that they never see me wavering in my confidence, wavering in how we prepare, giving them a way out or an excuse. We just tried to be real consistent. And I think that’s what really good leaders do.''

Johnson said he believed the Nets were "in the ballpark'' as far as meeting expectations for what their record was projected to be (they are 24-57) and he was happy with the professionalism and coachability of his players. If he was disappointed in anything, he said, it was their defense.

"I was hoping that we would be a little bit better defensively,'' he said. "But stuff happens that you can’t control. We’re going to try and improve in that area next year. I thought we would struggle offensively. You need playmakers. Lot of times when we got stuck offensively there was nowhere to go.''

Johnson said rookie forward Damion James, who has missed the last 13 games with soreness in his surgically repaired right foot, will suit up for the season finale but will not play.

"Billy (King, the Nets' GM) talked about putting him in uniform, go out and warm up with the guys, but (play) only in an extreme emergency,'' Johnson said.

Johnson did not have a specific explanation about the problem in James' foot that have caused him to sit out so long, other than the team believes it is not healthy enough to handle heavy minutes. The team believes James could play five or 10 minutes, but the team felt it better to not play him. Johnson insisted James will not require further surgery on the foot, which was initially broken in early December.